The present invention pertains in general to shock pulse testing methods and in particular to methods for simulating shock pulse on an encapsulated component.
It is generally known that a pressure bar can be used as a dynamic loading device by slowly pushing down on a specimen to find its strength. However, it is generally believed that a specimen attached to a pressure bar cannot be used to accurately simulate a high acceleration load on a fuze or on its components by dropping the bar onto an anvil because of the presence of harmonics characteristic of a pressure bar having a certain length. As a consequence, relatively complicated gun shock simulators, such as the simulator shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,432, have been constructed.
Because gun shock simulators rely upon recreating artillery conditions, projectile spin and other factors make it difficult or impossible to monitor transient failures in electronic components. This inability is particularly troublesome when a component is not destroyed but only malfunctions during flight. Furthermore, gun shock simulators are expensive and difficult to use.